Yule 2011

December 21, 2011

Tomorrow night, Dec. 22, marks the shortest day/longest night of the year. It’s the time when Pagans and Wiccans everywhere celebrate the rebirth of the Oak King and his symbolic defeat of the Holly God because after tomorrow night the days will continue to grow longer until mid-Summer when the Holly King returns to defeat the Oak King once again.

Back and forth, these Kings take turns ruling the Earth, one cloaked in darkness and the other in light, one incomplete without the other. Symbolic “enemies”, they are really brothers, or rather two halves of the Earth God himself.

For those who plan to celebrate the Winter Solstice with a ritual of their own, here’s a quick primer on what supplies you might need:

Incense: Pine, cedar, cinnamon and bayberry are favored for honoring the return of the Oak King and for sending the Holly King on his way with thanks and praise. Personally, I burn Nag Champa year round for all of my rituals, but I’ll burn cinnamon also as a sort of under-scent.

Herbs: Oak, evergreen, frankincense, holly, laurel, mistletoe, pine and sage. Luckily, most of us keep sage on hand year round.

Stones/Crystals: Ruby, garnet, bloodstone, emerald and diamond. I don’t personally have any emeralds, diamonds or rubies just laying around for ritual use, lol. But lucky me! Bloodstone is MY stone. I have a large (fist-sized) piece of it that I keep on my altar and I wear a bloodstone ring 24/7.

Spells: Auspicious spells for Sabbat include spells for peace, harmony, love and happiness. Good will toward men. (Sounds familiar?) It’s always a wonderful time of year to ask for enjoyment and prosperity during the reign of the Oak King.